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6499, 105mm Howitzer M2A1 & Carriage M2A1, Smart Kit. 1/35th-scale injection-molded styrene/multimedia kit. Contains: 201 styrene parts (97 for the figures), one turned aluminum gun tube, generic decal/marking schemes and six pages of instructions in seven steps.
Introduction.
The US Army began studies shortly after the end of the Great War to determine ways in which to increase the lethality of their artillery. Its final outcome was the design and production of a new divisional field howitzer, the 105mm Howitzer M2. Initial production was contracted for in 1939; by wars end, the M2 in all its permutations was the most widely produced piece of field artillery in the US arsenal.
This new kit from DML will allow the modeler to create a replica of the 105mm Howitzer M2A1, on Carriage M2A1. This design had the wheels brakes removed; the shield was much simpler than the one on Carriage M2A2 as kitted by Italeri many years ago. Regardless, the sprue layout indicates that version is a future possibility.
Gun and Carriage.
The gun is, as mentioned, mounted on the M2A1 carriage. Thus the main shield is of the proper configuration for the type. It is well-rendered as an extremely thin single part to which other details such as mounting struts and stowage boxes are attached; one side features the opening for the Range Quadrant. The wheels are multi-part assemblies that include separate hand-brakes. The Axle assembly forms the basis to which the left and right Trails are attached, along with their Spades; with care in assembly, the Trails, based on a slide-molded core, will be movable. They then receive the Drawbar and Lunette assemblies as well as the Handspike, Cleaning Staffs, Aiming Stakes and their mounting brackets.
The Carriage is also composed of slide-molded core parts, as is the Recoil Sleigh. The latter has the Recuperator Cylinder and the main portion of the gun tube molded as one piece. The gun tube is completed with a turned aluminum bore end, and a multi-part, two-position breech block. This is mounted to the Elevation Mechanism, which has the proper lighting holes and gear detail on its Quadrants. Separate linkages for both Elevation hand-wheels and the single Traverse hand-wheel are given as are the hand-wheels themselves. The final main items are the Panoramic Telescope, Elevation Quadrant and their mounts as well as the slide-molded Equilibrator assembly and housing. Many small non-descript parts provide for the final details.
The carriage can be posed in firing or travel mode and the gun tube can be elevated and traversed.
Figures.
There are four of them, which are based on previously-released figures that depicted men of the 101st Airborne Division during the fighting in the Ardennes in 1944-45. They are multi-pose in design so DML merely substituted different arms to make them a gun crew, albeit a reduced one. Each figure is broken down into several parts: torso, legs, arms and head. Helmets are separate as is every bit of their web equipment. The latter include cartridge cases, canteens, spades, first-aid pouch, a pair of bayonets and a pistol holster. No small arms are included; the M1 carbine would be most appropriate. Each figure is clothed in winter garments, so some of their trench-coats have separate lower segments for a better under-cut look. These guys are well-molded and will benefit from careful painting and perhaps after-market resin heads. Three complete rounds for the howitzer are provided, with decals for their stencil data.
Molding, Fit and Engineering.
Molding is up to todays high standards, with no shrink marks and all ejector pin marks are either hidden after assembly or negated by the use of small pips attached to the part. Mold seams are fine and easily dispensed with. Fit was equally excellent. Slide-molding was used in several places to enhance detail or simplify construction, while the shields are about as thin as styrene can be with current technology.
Accuracy and Details.
The gun matches photos quite well and only seems to be missing only the gunners firing lanyard. More accessories, such as empty cartridge cases, separate shells, powder increments, ammunition boxes or tubes, as well as proper weapons for the crew would not have gone amiss either.
Instructions.
These are in the conventional line drawing style and are rather short, but due to the number of small and or moving parts, it is recommended that the modeler proceed with caution, carefully cleaning and test fitting parts as he goes along.
Decals, Painting and Marking Information.
The decal sheet is quite tiny and only includes some small stencil data for the ammunition. They are from Italys Cartograf and are of their usual fine quality. Both howitzers are to be base painted in Olive Drab, while one has a pattern of whitewash for winter operations. In truth, visible markings on US pieces of towed ordnance are relatively rare, with the exception of the practice of painting names or slogans on gun tubes.
Conclusion.
This is a fine kit of a variation of this howitzer not yet seen in this scale. It bodes well for the fan of US ordnance, since it seems obvious that the M2A2 carriage will become available soon; perhaps DML even has a 3-inch Anti-Tank Gun M5 in the pipeline. Or, (dare I say it?) perhaps a proper M7 HMC.
Highly recommended.
Frank V. De Sisto
References consulted for this review included, but were not limited to the following books:
1. American Field Artillery 1941-45; Equipment of the US Army 1, Histoire & Collections, by P. Gaujac & N. Gohin.
2. Light and Medium Field Artillery; WW2 Fact Files, ARCO, by P. Chamberlain & T. Gander.
3. US Field Artillery of World War II; Osprey New Vanguard 131, by S. Zaloga & B. Delf.
4. 105mm Howitzer M2A1; Military Vehicle Workshop Series ARTY 02, Allied Command Productions, by S. Arnold.
Reviewers note: Since May of 2005, I have been working on books for Concord Publications, a sister company to DML. The reader may wish to take this into consideration. For my part, I will attempt to maintain an objective viewpoint when writing these reviews.
DML kits are available from retail and mail order shops. For details see their web site at: www.dragon-models.com.
